19 June 2012

Two-month Post-Launch Report

The Eleanor launched just over two months ago to rave reviews, and - as your management representative on the inside1 - I bring you this Post-Launch Report:

Expert Reviews

Recent reports from the experts place the Eleanor in the top 10% based on all major market indicators (height, weight, head circumference). We couldn't be more pleased.

Edit: Sorry for all the formatting issues with the initial post. Last time I use the 'Interpret typed HTML' option in Blogger instead of adding the code directly.

Development Process

Our development team have begun using new dump-capture hardware in recent weeks. We've moved to the venerable Cloth Diaper for our solution. It may be older technology, but our development team consider that a proof of its stability - anything that can stand the test of time like Cloth Diaper is worth consideration. So far, all signs are positive. Filters are reusable, so we don't have to rebuild from scratch to catch every core dump or leak. Once the filter has served its purpose, it's recycled and placed back in rotation. This allows a wide range of collection options at a very low cost. Efficiency is key, after all.

User Interface Improvements

"The Sprinkler", one possible configuration of the Eleanor

The Eleanor's Human-Input Devices and the adaptive driver software which power them are evolving on a daily basis.

The Eleanor is learning to use her optical sensors2 to detect and identify a wider range of objects and individuals.

We have seen new subroutines become evident in recent weeks, such as smile(), which appears to be called when the optical sensors detect a face which matches the Eleanor's list of known users. Other possible triggers for smile() include cleaning and drying the output port region following collection of "output", triggering the built-in accelerometer by moving from room to room, and utilizing the voice input option to interact with the Eleanor.

In addition, we're seeing significantly increased control capabilities of the Holistic External Access Device (H.E.A.D), which not only houses four of the five key input devices (and even makes use of the fifth, the touch interface used across the entire unit) of the Eleanor, but is also home to the Central Processor for the whole unit. As H.E.A.D control improves, we will start to see more progress towards making the Eleanor a hands-free unit.

Summary

The Eleanor has acquired a range of new capabilities in the past two months, and shows no signs of slowing down. Stay tuned for more exciting developments!

1 - You can also read the report from our Director of Marketing, Chief Compiler, and CFO here.2- Optical sensors remain azure for the time being. We have no indication at this time that they will change hue, but as the Eleanor is still in her infancy, anything is possible!